The Kansas City Chiefs and the Chicago Bears will get their legs warm as they meet in preseason action at Soldier Field. It's time to continue our NFL odds series with a Chiefs-Bears prediction and pick. 

The preseason is always a tricky animal. Teams are attempting to get their feet wet while not revealing their full deck and avoiding injury. Significantly, we are upon Week 1 of the preseason, and most players will be getting their first real action of football. It may be great for some and end badly for others. It is the nature of the sport. 

The Chiefs enter the season remaining hopeful for another Super Bowl. Consequently, their division has three other great teams, and getting back to the big game for the third time in four years will be difficult. Kansas City still has Patrick Mahomes, and he remains one of the best quarterbacks on the planet. Also, Travis Kelce remains one of the best tight ends in football. The Chiefs have talent throughout their roster. 

The Bears are rebuilding. Chicago seems ready to start fresh. Substantially, this season will test their resolve as new head coach Matt Eberflus takes the reigns as the new head coach. Justin Fields returns as the quarterback and will face significant tests throughout his season. Now, he gets a chance to prove the Bears made the right decision in drafting him. 

Here are the 2022 NFL odds, courtesy of FanDuel.

NFL Odds: Chiefs-Bears Odds

Kansas City Chiefs: -1 (-110)

Chicago Bears: +1 (-110)

Over: 37.5 (-110)

Under: 37.5 (-110)

Why The Chiefs Will Cover the Spread

Andy Reid announced that the Chiefs will play their starters in at least one series. Specifically, Reid announced that they would play four quarterbacks. Mahomes will play the first quarter and gets a chance to play with his new receivers Juju Smith-Schuster and Marquez Valdes-Scantling. Significantly, it will the beginning of the post-Tyreek Hill era, as Mahomes will no longer have his elite speedster with him. 

The Chiefs are focused on getting reps and avoiding injury. There were reports that the turf was in horrible shape. Thus, the Chiefs should tread lightly to avoid catastrophe in an otherwise meaningless game. Kansas City will carefully monitor the playing time of their stars, including Kelce and running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire. Also, it will be the debut of Ronald Jones, as the former Buc now is in the Chiefs' backfield. 

The first series will determine how well the Chiefs do in this game. We saw a few seasons ago how mortal this team is without Mahomes and other stars. The Chiefs do not have great secondary options and are almost top-heavy at this point. 

The Chiefs will cover the spread if Mahomes lights it up on the first two drives and puts the game out of reach early. Additionally, they cover the odds if they escape Soldier Field with no significant injuries while scoring early. 

Why The Bears Will Cover the Spread

The Bears will be playing to see what talent they have. Naturally, Fields will have 15-20 snaps. It means he will play a drive or two and then the backups will take over. The Bears are a bad team, probably one of the worst in football. However, preseason games render that useless. The 2008 Detroit Lions won all their preseason games before going 0-16 during the season. 

Running back David Montgomery and tight end Cole Kmet likely will not play. Additionally, Roquan Smith is in a contract dispute and will not play. Thus, the Bears will rely on plenty of guys who are just trying to make the team. After the initial series, they should not face many issues from the Chiefs. The top 2022 draft pick Kyler Gordon will also miss the game. Ultimately, the Bears will test the waters and see what they have, to know what players they can rely on down the line. 

The Bears will cover the spread if they do not allow Mahomes to score in his quarter of action. Significantly, that is all it will take. The Bears can match up with the Chiefs' backup players. 

Finals Chiefs-Bears Prediction & Pick

If this were a regular season game, the Chiefs would blast the Bears 44-13, and Mahomes would throw five touchdowns, including three to Kelce. Ultimately, it is just a preseason game, and the shoddy field is not even ready. Both teams will play like they are on eggshells and take extreme precautions to avoid injury. The Chiefs and the Bears will face an uphill battle as they prep for another season. Expect the Bears to cover the spread in this preseason game. 

Final Chiefs-Bears Prediction & Pick: Bears +1 (-110)